15 “Leopard” are not enough
German ring exchange with Slovakia threatens to burst
06/21/2022, 08:11 am
Berlin wants to deliver “Leopard” main battle tanks to Slovakia as part of a ring exchange if the NATO country transfers tanks from its stock to Kyiv. According to a report, however, there is a problem with the negotiations. So Bratislava should not be satisfied with the number of combat vehicles offered.
A German-Slovak ring exchange for arms deliveries to Ukraine, which has been planned for two months, has been delayed, according to a report by the portal “Business Insider“Because Berlin is not offering enough tanks. The exchange should therefore provide for Slovakia to deliver 30 Soviet-made “T-72” main battle tanks to Ukraine – and in return receive more modern German tanks as replacements.
According to “Business Insider”, Bratislava rejected the swap last week because Germany offered 15 Leopard 2A4 tanks. From Slovakia’s point of view, this is too small a substitute for the 30 “T-72” tanks to be delivered to Ukraine for its own national defense. According to the report, a spokeswoman for Slovakia’s Defense Ministry said 15 Leopard MBTs “could not be a solution for us as we need 30 MBTs for a tank battalion”.
According to the spokeswoman, negotiations are still ongoing, but the question remains when an agreement will be reached. Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht had previously stated that the exchange of rings with NATO partners, who could hand over older Soviet-designed weapons to Ukraine and could get replacements from Germany, was “on the right track”.
Slovakia has already given its neighbor EUR 154 million worth of arms aid since the outbreak of war. This was stated by Slovakian Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad. Among other things, the NATO country gave Ukraine its only missile defense system. To ensure that Slovakia does not remain unprotected as a result, Germany, the Netherlands and the USA have now stationed a total of four Patriot missile systems in Slovakia.
In a similar ring exchange, the relatively small country intends to hand over Soviet MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine and have its own airspace protected by Poland and the Czech Republic. In addition, Bratislava has given the Ukrainian army the opportunity to repair its damaged military equipment in an armaments company in eastern Slovakia near the border.